The developers of the Perdekraal East Wind Farm, in
the Western Cape, last week completed the project’s 48 wind turbine
foundations – three weeks ahead of schedule and still within budget.
The first of the foundations was poured in November
2018.
The majority of the labour was employed from the
local communities of Ceres, Nduli, Bella Vista and
the Prince Alfred hamlet, in support of
local employment and upliftment.
“Around 70% of the workforce responsible for building the
foundations came from these beneficiary communities,” Perdekraal Wind farm construction project manager Glenn Hobson said.
In a statement issued on Monday, the developers
said the foundation design used a 70% replacement
of cement, signalling a significant
improvement in the concrete mix,
having a 32.5% reduced carbon footprint.
Additionally, all material excavated from the
foundations had been reused on the site, either as fill on roads or in
preparation for the hard stands, situated adjacent to the foundations.
Each turbine base has a diameter of 19 m and
comprises over 45 t of reinforced steel and 369 m3
of 30 MPa concrete; while the
plinth requires 23 m3 of 60 MPa concrete. This is
equivalent to a total of 65 full concrete trucks per
foundation.
The 110 MW wind farm spans 3 055 ha.https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/perdekraal-east-wind-farm-turbine-foundations-completed-ahead-of-schedule-2019-06-24
